Vettel wins incident-free Bahrain GP

SAKHIR, Bahrain - The Associated Press

REUTERS photo

Two-time world champion Sebastian Vettel held off a charging Kimi Raikkonen to win an incident-free Bahrain Grand Prix Sunday for his first victory of the season.

Vettel started from pole for the first time this year and led from start to finish. Raikkonen worked his way up from 11th on the grid to finish 3.3 seconds behind for his first podium finish since returning to the sport this season. Raikkonen's Lotus teammate Romain Grosjean was third, followed by Vettel's Red Bull teammate Mark Webber.

The race had been overshadowed most of the week by clashes between riot police and anti-government demonstrators in the divided Gulf nation, but was held without a hitch. With security checkpoints boosted ahead of the race, there were no signs of protests near the circuit Sunday.